Breaking Down A Vocal Breakdown: Adele

For a young singer like Adele, there are few things worse than chronic vocal problems.  For the second time in the last year, she has had to cancel or reschedule tour dates due to vocal issues.  It almost becomes a pyramid of problems; from the artistic one of not being able to consistently re-create the vocal sound in concert that she created in the studio to the business/livelihood side of jobs and money (possibly millions of dollars) lost due to cancellations and a resultant mistrust of promoters and fan base alike who can never be sure if she's going to show up or not.
Add in the fact that, somewhere along the line, there have to be some well-respected Ear Nose Throat (ENT) doctors who would recommend surgery or "cutting the cords" (Elton John and Julie Andrews immediately come to mind); which becomes another awful decision to make, particularly when recovery takes more than a year -- or never.
I'm hardly anti-doctor, I'm probably more anti-cough drops, honey, lozenges, etc. used as "get-bys" for thrashed cords.
The human voice is a living instrument.  If the reed on your sax breaks, you don't just glue it together and keep playing.  That reed will never be the same.  Just like if a string breaks on your guitar, you don't stick a knot the middle, re-string it and keep plucking away.  Twist an ankle or sprain a ligament, stop running.
In rehabbing a voice (and, yeah, I've rehabbed quite a few of them over the years), it's best that the cords are put on complete rest so the body can recover.  If your career is at stake, you probably shouldn't even whisper.  You shouldn't vibrate the cords at all or try to "work around" your voice by speaking in a shallow manner.  Truly, silence is golden in vocal rehab for singers with damage.
After a few days, maybe even a few weeks, that's when rehab begins.
But it's not the voice that requires rehab, it's the body that requires vocal technique to support the voice.
Watch the interview and listen to Adele's speaking voice.  She's charming, speaks quickly, in long sentences, and has a tendency to breathe either shallowly or not at all before she starts speaking again.
Adele mentions that she recently gave up smoking --  which is something she loved to do.  Anybody who's familiar with the sound of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Ella, Billie, Etta, knows that smoking gives you a thicker, "gravelly" sound, which is cool for nightclubs, lounges and studio recording, but is hell to pay when the "industrial" job of singing comes up; sustaining a national tour.
So the first job is rest.
The next job for a belter like Adele is learning to breathe deeply, to the bottom of your lungs, not to the top of the collarbone.
After that, take the pressure off of your cords when you sing by putting more pressure in your back (press the ribs out when you breathe in) and expanding your breastplate out (the area right under where the ribs meet in front).  That's a deep breath.  Hang on to that air.
Now that the "roots of the tree" are taken care of, give the voice a pressurized exit out of the mouth by using a strong bite so there is a tightness, a flexed strength in the muscles of the jaw so the vocal cords can do their job and achieve different degrees of tension/tightness to hit a variety of pitches.
The body leads the voice.
And if the body commands enough energy, the voice will follow obediently.
It's the key to eight shows a week on Broadway, four to five hours a day in the studio or even six shows a day at a theme park.

Vocal Performance: The Eyes Have It, Pt. 2 -- Maintain An Even Plane

Now that you have practiced your points of focus: start Center, look Left, look Center, look Right, look Center, etc. (always coming back to center between Left & Right), you want to make sure that you "maintain an even plane."
In other words, don't let your eyes go over the audience's head and don't let your eyes look down at their shoes, either.   In an audition, you might have three people sitting at a table.  Not a problem.  When you perform, don't look your auditioners right in the eyes, that can be fairly uncomfortable for everybody.  Better yet, create/imagine a friendly face right next to the face of the person in the middle.  Imagine your new friend sitting at that table.  Look them in the eyes.  This will be your center focus.
Now imagine a friendly face just next to the face of the person on the left at the table.  Left Focus.
Now imagine a friendly face just next to the face of the person on the right at the table.  Right Focus.
There you have it.  Three simple points of focus that don't invade the casting people's space, but that share the same eye plane for all to see and feel your vocal performance.
This works for all singers from the stage whether it be Pop, Rock, Cabaret or Broadway.
Another issue for those of us watching you; if you close your eyes to show us how moved you are by your own performance, you've lost us.
Next: WHEN to change your point of focus.    

Pirates in the Studio, Robot at the Roxy, Powers in the Dawghouse

Here are some quick mid-week updates on a few of our voice studio clients:

Royal Pirates fans, I had the opportunity to sit in with Moon, James and Sooyoon last night at their rehearsal studio.  Got to hear their newest stuff and, while I am sworn to secrecy, I can tell you that not only will you not be disappointed, you will be OVERWHELMED when you hear it.

Katherine Pawlak and Sad Robot will be at the Roxy next Friday night 5/20.  Tracks are up on iTunes.  Bunim/Murray just picked up Sad Robot's music license for Bad Girls Club.  Congrats, KP!

B.K. Cannon will be guesting in a non-singing role on the season finale of Law & Order: LA.  Looking forward to her scene with Alfred Molina.

Peter Husmann is back in the studio prepping for the lead role of John Adams in 1776 at Glendale Centre Theatre.  Nice to have you back, Peter!

And Mary Powers (who now goes by "Bloody Mary" Powers) will also be gigging with The Modern End on 5/20 at Dawg House.  You might remember Mary from last season's American Idol:



Oh yeah, and our young friends Inversion will be making their debut this Sunday at AmplyFi.  Keep a watchful ear and eye out for Molly Kirschenbaum on vocals and keys and Keaton Applebaum on guitar.  P.S., they ain't even in high school yet...

Vocal Performance: The Eyes Have It, Pt. 1 -- Points of Focus

The eyes do have it.  While your voice can fill a room with energy, it is the eyes that bring it all into focus.

Points of Focus (Left/Center/Right) are crucial in vocal performance; in sharing your eyes or line of sight with the audience.

Some people read lips.  Everybody reads eyes.

Simplest approach (for now) is to:
1) Stretch out your arms in a "V" in front of you.  It should look like you're about to hug someone. Eyes are already at Center.  Pick a point about 15 feet in front of you and "see" it.  Really see it.
2) Turn Eyes and Face (just your eyes and your face, not the whole body) left along the left arm.  Don't go beyond the left arm.  Let the eyes lead the face, don't go all robot on us...Pick a point about 15 feet in front of you on the left and "see" it.
3) Back to center.  Eyes first, face follows.  Center Point of Focus.
4) Eyes lead face to right along right arm.  Pick Right Point of Focus (15 ft., etc.)
5) Back to center.  Eyes lead the face.

That's the start of it.  More tomorrow...

Sneak Peak: Royal Pirates at Wokcano Thursday Night

Royal Pirates will be playing a short set at 8:45p at an open charity fundraiser Thursday night, May 5 at Wokcano -- no age limit, no admission charge, what's not to like?  Yeah, I know it's right in the middle of your Cinco de Mayo celebration, but if you're in the area, take a break from the salsa and cerveza in favor of sake and sushi and the Royal Pirates!  See you there!

Find more ROYAL PIRATES songs at Myspace Music

Being Present

I talk about this all the time....

But it does bear repeating.

In an audition, many things are out of our control.  We usually don't control who our scene partner is when we get paired up to read for a musical.  Today's economics pretty much dictate that we don't hire and bring our own accompanist to a musical audition anymore. We certainly can't control whether or not a production team sees us as having the right look or image for the characters and matchups they have in mind (even if we do wear an original sailor's outfit from Dames At Sea to the first audition -- btw, don't do that...).

But we can certainly control whether or not we are "present" when we audition.  "Present" means simply being there.  When you walk in the audition room, be there.  If they say hello, say hello back. Don't prepare a speech or a witty line for when you first walk in -- that moment of inspiration is long past and you might not have their immediate attention if and when you do say it; you may unwittingly appear controlling or just loud and obnoxious, possibly interrupting their conversation about the singer who auditioned just prior.

We flip the switch when we are asked to perform.  At that point, we must let go of all self-observation as it is most important that we are present and focused on not just how we sound, but what we are saying, who we are saying it to, why we are saying it and thinking all the thoughts that go along with the freedom of being present.

When you can walk away from a vocal audition and honestly say, "I felt present when I sang," then you truly did your work as an artist.

Musical Theatre Equity Auditions For May 2011

The Wedding Singer May 9 at Musical Theatre West Rehearsal Hall

Palm Canyon Theatre/Palm Springs May 9 at Screenland

Great American Trailer Park Musical May 13 at San Diego Rep

Featured Vocal Studio Artist: Katherine Pawlak and Sad Robot

Aside from the fact that she's creative, motivated and works her ass off, Katherine's true talent lies in her authenticity.  Cameras rarely lie and a detached, "pose-y" or unauthentic performance in a video is painful to watch.  Katherine's enthusiasm for the material, even after hundreds of live performances never flags, never dies.
If you're looking for the formula:
Energy + Enthusiasm = Authenticity
That's Katherine Pawlak.  That's Sad Robot.
Check out Sad Robot
Or just buy their new album on iTunes...